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Palgrave Macmillan

Evaluating NATO Enlargement

From Cold War Victory to the Russia-Ukraine War

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  • © 2023

Overview

  • Offers a nuanced discussion of the merits and drawbacks of NATO enlargement
  • Pays special attention to the 2022 conflict between Russia and Ukraine
  • Provides a comparison of the policies chosen to those that were not chosen

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Table of contents (16 chapters)

  1. Foreign Policy and Strategy Debates

  2. Great Power Relations

  3. Organizational Politics and Debates

Keywords

About this book

Mobilizing an interdisciplinary group of scholars and practitioners, this book reviews the history and consequences of NATO’s post-Cold War enlargement into Central and Eastern Europe. It offers a nuanced discussion of the merits and drawbacks of NATO enlargement across the different actors involved and compares the results of the policy against potential alternatives that were not chosen. Particular attention is given to NATO enlargement’s influence on the course of U.S. foreign policy, democracy and security in Central and Eastern Europe, NATO’s own development as a political and military institution, and relations with China and Russia (including the 2022 Russia-Ukraine War).  Written for an engaged audience, the book is designed to appeal to students, researchers, and policymakers alike while offering both policy insights and avenues for future scholarship.

Reviews

“This edited volume represents, as yet, the single most important English-language contribution to the question of post-Cold War NATO enlargement. Goldgeier and Shifrinson largely concede that their efforts remain incomplete, but they have begun answering questions that will only grow more important with time. This important edited volume will benefit policy-makers, allowing a deeper sense of history to inform their decision-making and serving as a reminder of the contingent forces that shape world politics.” (Harold Mock, International Affairs, Vol. 100 (1), 2024)


“This interesting and important collections of essays on the enlargement of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) and its consequences appearedat a historic moment … . It is a development—and to some extent an adjustment—of the papers that were published as a special issue of International Politics in 2020 … . the volume intelligently tries to bring some consensus to the discussion.” (Harold James, H-Diplo, H-Net Reviews, November 3, 2023)
"Casual observers of the “Transatlantic Relationship“ likely read or heard few criticisms of NATO enlargement, though these criticisms were indeed levelled.  The Russia-Ukraine war, the first large-scale interstate war in Europe since 1945, suggests that something about the project did not work out as hoped. “Evaluating NATO enlargement,” brings together a diverse array of scholars who are expert in every facet of the debate from, “was it wise for the U.S. from a security point of view?” to “was it beneficial for eastern Europeans from a democratization/liberalization point of view?”  These analyses are informed by deep knowledge of the region, close study of NATO as an organization, rich accounts of the history itself, and theoretical and methodological sophistication.  The authors disagree about many questions.  Because of their sophisticated treatment of their disagreements, the book will be an essential resource for those who wonder how we reached this tragic moment, and whether the extraordinary extension of U.S. influence deep into Eurasia has proved an act of immense strategic foresight or a major strategic irritant." (Barry R. Posen, Ford International Professor of Political Science & Director Emeritus, Security Studies Program, Massachusetts Institute of Technology)


"Goldgeier and Shifrinson have produced a book that is at once very insightful, important, and timely. As the invasion of Ukraine brings NATO’s enlargement back to the center of transatlantic strategy debates and with walls reappearing in Europe, this volume helps us better understand contemporary transatlantic security, how we arrived at this war and how we might construct a lasting European security in the future.  It is a breath of fresh air to the often-stale back-and-forth over NATO enlargement, and an essential and powerful tool for anyone interested in NATO, East-West relations, and transatlantic security."

(Brig. General (ret.) Frédéric Pesme, former Deputy Director, Policy and Capabilities, NATO’s International Military Staff)

“I so admire that Jim Goldgeier and Josh Shifrinson, who disagree profoundly about both the motives for and consequences of NATO enlargement, teamed up to bring together this serious collection of diverse arguments.  This collection is outstanding scholarship by many of the best thinkers about alliances and international security.  A great read, and a great teaching book.”

(Dr. Kori Schake, Senior Fellow and Director of Foreign and Defense Policy Studies at the American Enterprise Institute)


Editors and Affiliations

  • American University, Washington, USA

    James Goldgeier

  • University of Maryland, College Park, USA

    Joshua R. Itzkowitz Shifrinson

About the editors

James Goldgeier is Visiting Scholar at Stanford University’s Center for International Security and Cooperation, Visiting Fellow at the Brookings Institution, and Professor of International Relations at the School of International Service at American University, where he served as Dean from 2011–17. 

Joshua R. Itzkowitz Shifrinson is Associate Professor with the School of Public Policy at the University of Maryland, Senior Fellow with the Center for International and Security Studies at Maryland (CISSM), and Associate Editor of H-Diplo’s International Security Studies Forum (ISSF).



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